WOMEN JOIN THE ARMED FORCES




Just like in WWI women were enlisted in the army but were given clerical jobs instead of participating in combat. In May, 1942 Congress established the Women's Army Auxiliary Corps (WAAC) and appointed Oveta Culp Hobby to serve as its first director. Many women were still unhappy that it was not a part of the regular army so about a year later the WAAC was replaced with the WAC (Women's Army Corps). Director Hobby was now promoted to Colonel

In 1942 training programs began to train female pilots to deliver planes to assist in the war effort. A year after that the Women Airforce Service Pilots emerged. Through this, about 300 female pilots made over 12,000 deliveries of 77 different kinds of planes. Shortly after that the Coast Guard,the navy, and the marines also set up their own women's units. In addition to the women in these organizations, over 68,000 more women served in the military as nurses.
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